Tractor



Nov. 9 1926.

E. `A. JOHNSTON ET AL TRACTOR original Filed August 25, 1917 4 Sheets-Sheet l @GQ95561456 d/jira@ MQW ` Nov. 9 1926.

E. A. JOHNSTON ET AL TRACTOR original Fild August 25, i917' 4 sheen-sheet 2 MSN N0 www 4 Sheetsv-Sxee't 4 Wam, ZUErg/Zro f Innere/@0755" Edu/Wei@ E A JOHNSTON ET AL TRACTOR y orlglnal Flled August 25 1917 www.;

Nov. 9 1926.

Patented; Nev; 9, 192s.

UNITED'STATES PATENT 'o1-Fries. f

EDWARD A. JOHNSTON AND GSTAFW. ENGSTR-JM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNORS TO INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

TRACTOR.

Original application tiled August 25, 1917, Serial No. 188,210. Divided and this application led November 11, 1922. Serial No. 600,211'.

This invention relates to tractors and particularly to the frame construction thereof, and is a division of our application filed August 25, 1917, Serial No. 188,210.

The ordinary three or four wheel tractor having one or two driving wheels meets the general needs in connection with plowing and other draft loads, but there are conditions which cannot be combated successfully o Vwith this type of tractor. For instance, it

is not uncommon to see the two rear drive wheels of a two wheel drive tractor bury themselves up to their hubs when driving in sandy soil or in wet, soggy ground. To l5 overcome this particular diiliculty occasioned in certain sections of this and other countries, track-laying types of tractors have been built and used. At best, however, the track-laying type of tractor is a compli cated piece of machinery having a large number of intricate parts which thus far have given considerable trouble to their operators. There is a need, therefore, for a simple general urpose tractor which also is capable of e ective work, especially in sandy, loose, o1 muddy ground.

One object, therefore, of this invention is to facilitate plowing and other draft work, lespecially under unfavorable conditions, such as sandy, loose, or muddy ground conditions.

, Another object of the invention is to provide a tractor having improved driving and general construction features, which is adapted to do effective work under Suchdiverse ground conditions. v

Another object is to simplify and control in a novel manner the movements of a tractor, having as few parts as possible and arranging the same com actly tomeet the various requirements or successful oommereial operation.

These and other objects are accomplished by providing a simple, com act'tractor having all of its wheels positively driven and arranged to be effectively controlled for steering purposes.

The invention is illustrated on the accompanying sheets of drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of our tractor' Figure 2 is a top plan view of the same;

toFigure 3 is a front elevation of the traer:

Figure 4 is a fragmentary rear elevation 55 of the same tractor; and

Figure 5 is a detail sectional view, on-an enlarged scale, taken in the plane of the broken line 5 5 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrow and showing in geleo rnl the power and speed transmission sysem. The various novel features of our invent1on will be apparent from the following s ecification and drawings and will be par- 65 ticularly pointed out in the appended claims. Our tractor includes a main frame having left and right-hand side members and 11 which are connected at their front ends by a bolster 12 having depending arms 13 and 1 on opposite sides, which arms are provi ed with elongated guiding slots 15 and 16, respectively. `An equalizing bar 17 is pivotally mounted at 18 to the bolster 12 and extends laterally in opposite directions, the opposite ends of which equalizing bar rest upon forwardly extending members 19 and 20 which are adapted to move vertically in the slots 15 and 16, respect1vely. By referring to Figures 1 and 2, it will be seen that the members 19 and 20 are respectively connected to the front ends of casings 21 and 22, which extends rearwardly of the tractor below the side frame members (see Figures 1, 4 and 5) and are connected b suitable bolts 23 to hollow depending anger arms 24 and 25, respectively, which are respectively pivotally hung on laterally and op ositelv exter dinor trunnion members 26 an 27 (see Figure 5), which are fitted into or form a ortion of the transmission casing 28, whic is secured to and supported by the side frame members 10 andv 11 and which is rovided with a removable plug 97 whereby the casing may be drainedof its oil. From this arrangement it is apparent that each of the casings l 21 and 22 is independently mounted for pivotal or hinging movements about the trun nionv members 26 and 27 and together with the members 19 and 20 constitute supplemental frames;

The trunnons 26 and 27 are co-axial with driving shaft for transmitting pow-ei* t6 the tractor wheels las will be apparent'as the description proceeds.

Operatively connected to the casing 21 are three drive wheels 29, 30 and 31, and like`- wise operatively connected'to the other casing 22 are three drive wheels 32. 33 and 34. In view of the fact that the driving connections for each set of the Wheelsare the same on both sides, one side only will be described,

this being the left side of the machine. Secured to one end of the yshaft of the drive wheel 32 is a cross key 36 (see Figures 1 and 2) which fits between pairs of lugs 37 for transmitting rotary movement to the wheel The driving connection between each driving shaft and its corresponding wheel is the same. Secured to the other end of the driving shaft 35 for the left front wheel 32 is a gear 38, and in the same way gears 39 and 42 are secured to the drive wheels 33 and 34. The drive Wheels 32 and 33 are operatively connected by a train of three intermediate gears 41, while the wheels 33 and 34 are connected by three intermediate gears 44. The driven gears 38, 39 and 42 and the intermediate gears 41 and 44 are enclosed in they casing 22, the intermediate gears being supported on studs 45 carried by the gear casing 22.

' Referring to Figures 1 and 5, it will be seen that the gear 42 is driven by the intermediate vgear 44, which in turn is driven by the gear 46 shown integral with the gear 47 and both mounted on roller bearings on the spindle 48 carried by the hanger arm 25. The gear 47 is .driven by the gear 49 mounted on a roller bearing on the shaft 50, which is also carried by the hanger arm 25. The gear 49 is driven by the gea-r 51, which is keyed on the sleeve or driving shaft 52, and on the other end of the sleeve is keyed a beveled gear 53 `forming a part of a differ; ential gear mechanism. enclosed by a housing 54. The housing is rotatably mounted on the extended hub 53a of the gear 53 and carries a plurality of studs or short shafts 55, upon each of which is mounted a beveled gear 56 meshing with the beveled gear 53. A beveled gear 57 formed integrally with the beveled gear 56 meshes with a beveled gear 58 keyed to one end of a shaft 59 which extends transversely with respect to the transmission casing 28 and through the hollow shaft 52. To the outer end of the shaft 59 is secured a brake wheel 60 (see Figure 2). co-operating with which is a brake band 61 to be referred to hereinafter. The beveled gears 56 of the differential mechanism .also mesh with a beveled gear 62 having an mits a driving motion through gears 64, 65, 66, 67, 44 arid 42 to the rear right-hand driving Wheel 31, there heilig other driving connections for the other right-hand driving wheels 29 and 30, as described in connection lwith the driving wheels on the letthand side of the machine.

Below the differential gearing there is mounted a cross shaft 68 journaled in bearings 69 carried by caps 70 laterally removable from the transmission casing 28. Secured to the central part of this cross shaft 68 is a beveled gear 71, which meshes with a beveled gear not shown and which is mounted upon the rear end of a shaft 73 (see Figure 1) extending longitudinally with respect t0 the tractor and which is operatively connected to the crank shaft ot the engine 74 hy a clutch 75, which is controlled by a pedal 76 mounted upon a rock shaft 77 atthe rear of the tractor, a link 78 being connected to the rock shaft and extending forwardly and connected to another rock shaft 79, which is operatively connected to the clutch 75. lVhen the clutch is thrown in, causing the shaft 73 to rotate with the crank shaft, motion is transmitted to the cross shaft 68.

Slidably mounted upon the cross shaft are integrally formed gears 80 and 81. the former of which is adapted to mesh with a gear `with another gear 83 also secured to the differential casinor 54. These gears 80 and 81 are rotatable with and shiftable on the shaft 68' to mesh with their respective mating gears by a hand controlled lever 84 (see Figure 4) which is mounted upon a rock` shaft 85, to 'which is secured an arm 86 operativelyonnected to the gears 80 and`81. Also slidable upon the cross shaft 68 on the opposite .side' of the gea-r 71 is a gear 87 which is rotatable with the shaft 68 and slidable thereon, and which is adapted to mesh with a gear 88 also secured to the differential housing 54. This gear 87l is also adapted to mesh with a reverse gear 89, which is operatively connected with agear 90, which in turn meshes with gear' 88. The gear 87 is shift-ed into engagement with the gears 88 and 89 by a hand controlled.

.84 into a position to place gear80 into mesh with gear 82, whereupon the differential casing 54 will be rotated, causing the transmission of power to the gears 53 and 62 and the oppositely extending sleeves 52 und 63 to the gearing, which connects with the drive wheels on either side of the tractor for driving th tractor by six drive wheels. T he tractor will be caused to move at. second speed .forward if the same hand controlled lever 84 is moved in a direction to cause gear 81 to mesh with its mating gear 83. The tractor will be driven at high spoed forward it' the other hand controlled lever 91 is shifted to cause gear 87 to move into mesh with its mating gear 88, and if the hand controlled lever 91 is moved into a position to cause gear 87 to mesh with gear 89, the tractor will be caused to take a rearward movement.

Formed between the hand controlledv levers 8-1 and 91 there is an interlock which includes notched members 94 and 95, shown in Figure 4, secured, respectively, to the control levers 84 and 91, which are engaged by an intermediate member 96, having pointed ends which are adapted to pass into the notches or ride on the curved surfaces of the members 94 and 95. The pointed member 96 is in engagement with a notch in the member 91, whereby the control lever 91 is free to move in either direction. As soon as the control lever 91 is moved in either direction from its neutral position, it will be seen that it is impossible to move the control lever 84. Likewise, when the control lever 91 is located in its neutral position, the control lever 84 may be moved in either direction from its neutral position. In this manner it is im ossible to cause injury to the gearing by t irowing both sets of gears into mesh at the same time.

The steering of the tractor is accomplished by means of a single control lever 98, which is mounted upon one end of the cross shaft 77, which, through suitable connections, including a link 99, is connected to the brake strap 61 surrounding the brake wheel 60 mounted upon the'shaft 59. The contpol lever 98 is also connected through suitable connections, including a link 100, to a brake strap 101 surrounding the brake wheel 102 mounted upon the outer end of shaft 103. It will be noted that the shafts '59 and 103 are connected to gears 58 andv 104, respectively, of a differential gearingmechanism which is a differential formedwithin another differential including the gears 53 and 62.

If it is desired to turn the tractor tothe right, the control lever 98 is thrown in one direction from the neutral position, whereupon the right-hand brake strap 101 will be forced into engagement with the brake wheel `102, causing the gear 104 to slow up or even to stop,l according to the amount of braking 'action applied. The differential idlers 56, 57

will then revolve, causing the gear 53 to speed up and the gear 62 to slow down.

Owing to the fact that the gear ratio between the gears 56 and 62 is greater than between the gears 57 and 104, the gelr 104 never will be stopped altogether. The result is that applying the brake to the brake wheel 102 slows down lthe right-hand drive wheels 29, 30, 31. and speeds up the drive wheels 33. 3l. and the tractor will be turned to the right, the sharpness of the turn depending upon the amount of braking action applied. In like manner, when it is desired to turn to the left, a braking action isapplied to the brake wheel 60 which causes the drive wheels 32, 33, 34 to slow down and the drive wheels 29, 30, 31 to speed up. The sharpnessof the turn will depend upon the amount. of the braking action and may be regulated by the operator with great nicety either in forward or reverse movement. A change in the proportion of the gears of the inner and outer differential would allow the drive of one side to bc stopped altogether,

or even to be reversed. When the hand controlled lever 98 is in neutral position and the. clutch 7 5 is in, power 'is transmitted to each one of the six drive wheels 29 to 34, inclusive, which wheels present a relatively broad traction surface to the ground and are effective in propelling the tractor over sandy, loose o1' muddy ground without sinking into the ground and with a minimum loss of power caused bv slippage. In this way'the tractor is made highly eflicient for draft purposes. All six wheels `a're.efective in transmitting power at all times. The tractor is not only operated to advantage in sandy, loose and muddy ground, but also over uneven ground. The wheels are Valways maintained in engagement with the ground, as each. of the gear casings carry the drive wheels, is independently and pivotally mounted Aupon the trunnions 26 and 27, respectively, the front ends of the casings 21 and 22, or,'rather, the members 19 and 20, respectively, secured thereto being' vertically movable in the elongated guide openings 15 and 16 of the bolster 12 to compensate for uneven ground conditions. By means of this simple, compact .and easily ycontrolled arrangement a tractor which is adapted to meet all the requirements for successful commercial operation is rovided. hat we claim, as our inventionand desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a tractor, the combination of a main frame, an engine mounted thereon, a differential having a casing mounted on said main frame, trunnions carried by said casing, hanger arms pivotally mounted on lsaid trunnions, a'l gear casing secured to each of said hanger arms, wheels carried by said gear casings, a driving connection between the engine and the differential. anda driving connection between the differential and the wheels including. shafts extending through said trunnions andgears carried by said anger arms and geen in said gear casings operatively connected to said wheels.

e1 and 22, which.

2. In a tractor, the combination of a frame, an engine mounted thereon, a casing pivotally mounted with respect tol said frame, gears carried within said` casing, inidependentground engaging wheels outside of and supporting said casing and operatively connectedr to the gears in the casing, and a driving connection between the engine and said gears.

3. In a tractor, the combination of a main frame, an engine carried by sai-d frame, a bolster carried by the front end of the. frame and having vertical guides, supplemental frames pivotally connected to the rear of the main frame and havin-g their forward ends niovably mounted in the vertical guides, an equalizing bar engaging the forward ends of the supplemental frames and pivotally connected to the bolster, propelling means mounted on the supplemental frames and supporting the tractor, and driving connections between the engine and propelling means.

Li. In a tractor, the combination of a main frame, an engine mounted thereon, a diii'erential having a casing mounted on the main frame, side frames pivotally supported at one end on the differential casing, guides on the opposite end of the main frame adapted@ to receive the corresponding ends. of the'` side frames, balanced means for supportingr said opposite end of the mainl frame on the ends of said side frames, traction means carried by the side frames and supporting the tractor, and driving connections between the engine and differential and differential and traction means for propelling the tractor.

5. In a tractor, the combination of a main frame supporting thereon a prime mover and a transmission mechanism including a transverse shaft, hangers pivotally mounted on the main frame coaxial with said shaft and de )ending below ther main frame, guides depen ying from the main frame,` supplemental wheel carrying frames carriedl by the hangers and slidable in the guides, and means forl driving the wheels from the trans mission mechanism.

In` a tractor, a main frame, a driving shaft extending transversely of" and above the plane ofthe rear end ofthe main frame, supplemental frames lying in a plane below the main fraineand pivotally connected at their rear ends to the main frame co-axial with the driving shaft, vertical guides depending from the front end of the main frame for guiding the front ends of the supplemental frames, whereby the supplemental fran'ios` may rise and fall in conformity to irregularities in the ground being traversed, ground engaging means on the supplemental frames, and driving connections between the opposite ends of the driving shaft and ground engaging means on the respective supplemental frames. i

7'. In a. tractor the combination of a main bolster having laterally extending depend ing guides carried by the front ofthe frame,l

frame, an engine carried by the frame, a

for up and down movementyan equalizing bar engaging the forward ends of the supplemental frames and pivotally connected to the bolster, propelling means mounted on the supplemental frames and supporting the tractor, and driving connections between the engine and propelling means.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures.

EDWARD A. JOHNSTON. GUSTAF W. ENGSTROM. 

